Free City of Cracow

The Free City of Cracow, also known as the Republic of Krakow, was a republican government in Poland that ruled over the city of Krakow, existing from 3 May 1815 to 16 November 1846. The republic was established as a protectorate of Prussia, the Austrian Empire, and the Russian Empire as a result of the Congress of Vienna, which stripped the Duchy of Warsaw of its independence. Adam Czartoryski devised the republic's initial constitution, which was expanded in 1818. Legislative power was vested in the Assembly of Representatives, and the Governing Senate held the executive power. After the 1833 November Uprising against Russia, the partitioning powers lowered the numbers of senators and deputies, decreased the competences of the Cracovian politicians, and empowered the partitioning commissioners. In 1835, a secret treaty between the partitioning powers was concluded, uner which Austria could annex Cracow in the case of additional Polish unrest. After the Krakow Uprising of 1846, Austria annexed Cracow, which became the Grand Duchy of Krakow.